Archive for the ‘austin’ Category

And everyone’s first instinct was to 1) pile out of their dorms 2) look up at the sky in slack-jawed amazement 3) call their friends 4) start cheering and making “honk yer horn” gestures at passing cars 5) start singing Christmas carols 6) have some guys (good-looking guys, mind you) get down to their boxers and start running around campus with the college and state flag 7) start fight chants 8)Sing “The Eyes of Texas” 9) as more people join in to look at the sky, repeat as necessary.

Hmm. Not much to post about this weekend – not because nothing is happening, but because midterms are destroying my will to live, and the only thing that compells me to continue on is the near, dear hope that the Muppets Show will be revived soon. The only thing that’s happened is ACL is going on, and every crazy music-loving nut from here to Minnesota has suddenly appeared, ranting about the eternal battle of Jesus and devil on the bus system, sacking out on the sidewalk next to the trashcan crawling with cockroaches, and just generally being strange and disturbing.

Of course, the only reason this is notable is because the last three weeks have been remarkably non-dangerous. I suppose this is because the cops need to keep the city reasonably safe for ACL attendees – it’s a prime source of revenue for the city, after all – but I wish they did it all the time. On the other hand, I think it must be worse than usual. In the space of two days, two not-particularly-safety-conscious friends have told me to be safe when I’m walking outside, and also, girls don’t take night classes because it’s not safe. Hm. News to me.

It was very sweet of them to be concerned, but considering that last year, they were wandering around campus with their mp3 players turned up full-blast after dark while I was avoiding the Drag and carrying pepper spray…well, I think it’s a little overdue, isn’t it? On the other hand, I’m relieved they’re actually taking note of what’s going on around them. I don’t want my friends to get mugged.

So, what’s going on? Is Austin just unusually lousy with crazy homeless people this year, or are people just noticing the situation more? I mean, I don’t really notice a difference, but I was carrying pepper spray from before the April ’08 robberies, so I don’t think I’m the best judge. Too paranoid.